at!
center!mass!first,!then!in!a!pattern—two!at!center!mass,!a!head!
shot,!two!to!center!mass,!one!to!the!pelvic!girdle,!then!back!to!
center!mass,!etc.,!until!the!target!goes!down.!The!training!paid!
off—one!of!the!few!things!I’d!found!I!was!really!good!at!since!
giving!up!basketball.!One!of!the!nine—the!last?—had!slammed!
into!his!rib!cage!under!his!left!arm!where!the!armor!provided!
no!protection.!A!lucky!shot!when!he!raised!his!weapon!to!fire.!
!
Two!more!medics!chatted!nonchalantly!at!the!back!of!the!
EMT!bus,!one!sitting!inside!the!open!doors,!the!other!standing!
outside,! a! foot! on! the! bumper,! hand! resting! on! his! knee.! I!
caught!a!bit!of!it!as!I!passed!by.!
!
“Looks!like!a!fucking!war!zone.!Those!are!five6fifty6six!by!
forty6five!casings.!Assault!weapons.”!
!
“Guy!was!lucky!the!bullet!didn’t!fragment.”!
!
Both! Charlie! and! I! had! been! lucky.! I! assumed! Clayt! and!
Connie!had!been,!too.!They!were!simply!gone,!whether!before!
or!during!the!firefight!was!anyone’s!guess.!
!
As! I! approached,! the! deputy! waved! at! an! empty! chair,! as!
cavalier!as!the!medics.!
!
“Have!a!seat.”!!
!
I!surveyed!the!faces!around!the!table.!“Didn’t!know!I’d!be!
playing!to!a!packed!house.”!
!
“We! take! it! very! seriously! when! a! member! of! law!
enforcement!gets!shot,”!he!replied.!
!
“I! don’t?! Bastards! ruined! a! perfectly! good! picnic.! Pissed!
me! off.”! I! heard! the! rising! pitch! of! my! voice,! and! took! a! deep!
breath.!“I!defended!myself!and!Officer!Jones!to!the!best!of!my!
ability.!Now!I’ve!got!a!death!on! my !conscience,!detective.!You!
Night&Tide —Sherer&
52&
kill!anyone!yet!today?”!My!hands!trembled.!I!slid!them!off!the!
table!into!my!lap!before!anyone!noticed.!
!
“Simmer!down,”!an!older!cop!said,!his!voice!friendly.!“We!
can! imagine! what! you’ve! been! through.! It! can’t! have! been!
easy.”!
!
“Then! what’s! all! this?”! I! drew! a! circle! in! the! air! with! a!
finger.!
!
“Like!Deputy!Roberts!said,!we’re!taking!this!seriously,”!the!
older!cop!said.!“We!want!to!find!these!guys,!whoever!they!are.!
The! more! departments! we! have! looking,! the! faster! we! get!
results.!What!you’ve!got!here,”!he!circled!his!finger!around!the!
table,! imitating! me,! “is! the! core! investigative! team.! Lead!
detective! Roberts! and! his! partner! Hartson! both! report! to! me,!
Lieutenant! White.! Officer! Boyer! there,! with! Port! Orchard!
police,!will!help!us!locally.!And!Detective!Lewandowski!is!our!
liaison!with!Seattle!on!this,!since!your!friend!Jones!is!an!officer!
with!SPD.”!!
!
My!gaze!lingered!on!Lewandowski.!“You!got!here!fast.”!!
!
“Badged! my! way! to! the! front! of! the! ferry! line,”! he! said.!
“Lights!and!sirens!from!Bremerton.”!He!gritted!his!teeth.!“He’s!
one!of! ours .!Chief,!assistant!chief,!maybe!a!dozen!guys!or!more!
have!been!waiting!for!him!at!Harborview!since!we!got!the!call.!
You!gettin’!the!drift!yet?”!
!
I!regarded!the!faces!again.!Clenched!jaws,!furrowed!brows!
and!flushed!skin!mirrored!my!own.!I!nodded.!
!
Roberts!took!control!again.!“Take!us!through!it!one!more!
time.”!
!
I!recounted!what!I!remembered.!No,!I!didn’t!know!who!the!
men!were!or!where!they’d!come!from.!I!had!no!idea!how!many!
there’d! been,! but! in! addition! to! the! two! I’d! seen,! I’d! heard! at!
least!two!more!voices.!No,!I!didn’t!know!what!they!wanted!or!
why! they! opened! fire,! but! they! seemed! to! have! been! looking!
for! someone.! When! they! hadn’t! found! whoever! it! was! they!
wanted,!they!left.!No,!I!didn’t!see!their!vehicle!or!get!a!license!
Night&Tide —Sherer&
53&
plate! number.! I’d! been! too! busy! shooting! at! a! man! who’d!
seemed!intent!on!killing!me.!
!
“Attempted!kidnapping?”!Hartson!said!to!his!partner.!
!
Roberts! turned! to! me.! “What,! exactly,! did! these!
center!mass!first,!then!in!a!pattern—two!at!center!mass,!a!head!
shot,!two!to!center!mass,!one!to!the!pelvic!girdle,!then!back!to!
center!mass,!etc.,!until!the!target!goes!down.!The!training!paid!
off—one!of!the!few!things!I’d!found!I!was!really!good!at!since!
giving!up!basketball.!One!of!the!nine—the!last?—had!slammed!
into!his!rib!cage!under!his!left!arm!where!the!armor!provided!
no!protection.!A!lucky!shot!when!he!raised!his!weapon!to!fire.!
!
Two!more!medics!chatted!nonchalantly!at!the!back!of!the!
EMT!bus,!one!sitting!inside!the!open!doors,!the!other!standing!
outside,! a! foot! on! the! bumper,! hand! resting! on! his! knee.! I!
caught!a!bit!of!it!as!I!passed!by.!
!
“Looks!like!a!fucking!war!zone.!Those!are!five6fifty6six!by!
forty6five!casings.!Assault!weapons.”!
!
“Guy!was!lucky!the!bullet!didn’t!fragment.”!
!
Both! Charlie! and! I! had! been! lucky.! I! assumed! Clayt! and!
Connie!had!been,!too.!They!were!simply!gone,!whether!before!
or!during!the!firefight!was!anyone’s!guess.!
!
As! I! approached,! the! deputy! waved! at! an! empty! chair,! as!
cavalier!as!the!medics.!
!
“Have!a!seat.”!!
!
I!surveyed!the!faces!around!the!table.!“Didn’t!know!I’d!be!
playing!to!a!packed!house.”!
!
“We! take! it! very! seriously! when! a! member! of! law!
enforcement!gets!shot,”!he!replied.!
!
“I! don’t?! Bastards! ruined! a! perfectly! good! picnic.! Pissed!
me! off.”! I! heard! the! rising! pitch! of! my! voice,! and! took! a! deep!
breath.!“I!defended!myself!and!Officer!Jones!to!the!best!of!my!
ability.!Now!I’ve!got!a!death!on! my !conscience,!detective.!You!
Night&Tide —Sherer&
52&
kill!anyone!yet!today?”!My!hands!trembled.!I!slid!them!off!the!
table!into!my!lap!before!anyone!noticed.!
!
“Simmer!down,”!an!older!cop!said,!his!voice!friendly.!“We!
can! imagine! what! you’ve! been! through.! It! can’t! have! been!
easy.”!
!
“Then! what’s! all! this?”! I! drew! a! circle! in! the! air! with! a!
finger.!
!
“Like!Deputy!Roberts!said,!we’re!taking!this!seriously,”!the!
older!cop!said.!“We!want!to!find!these!guys,!whoever!they!are.!
The! more! departments! we! have! looking,! the! faster! we! get!
results.!What!you’ve!got!here,”!he!circled!his!finger!around!the!
table,! imitating! me,! “is! the! core! investigative! team.! Lead!
detective! Roberts! and! his! partner! Hartson! both! report! to! me,!
Lieutenant! White.! Officer! Boyer! there,! with! Port! Orchard!
police,!will!help!us!locally.!And!Detective!Lewandowski!is!our!
liaison!with!Seattle!on!this,!since!your!friend!Jones!is!an!officer!
with!SPD.”!!
!
My!gaze!lingered!on!Lewandowski.!“You!got!here!fast.”!!
!
“Badged! my! way! to! the! front! of! the! ferry! line,”! he! said.!
“Lights!and!sirens!from!Bremerton.”!He!gritted!his!teeth.!“He’s!
one!of! ours .!Chief,!assistant!chief,!maybe!a!dozen!guys!or!more!
have!been!waiting!for!him!at!Harborview!since!we!got!the!call.!
You!gettin’!the!drift!yet?”!
!
I!regarded!the!faces!again.!Clenched!jaws,!furrowed!brows!
and!flushed!skin!mirrored!my!own.!I!nodded.!
!
Roberts!took!control!again.!“Take!us!through!it!one!more!
time.”!
!
I!recounted!what!I!remembered.!No,!I!didn’t!know!who!the!
men!were!or!where!they’d!come!from.!I!had!no!idea!how!many!
there’d! been,! but! in! addition! to! the! two! I’d! seen,! I’d! heard! at!
least!two!more!voices.!No,!I!didn’t!know!what!they!wanted!or!
why! they! opened! fire,! but! they! seemed! to! have! been! looking!
for! someone.! When! they! hadn’t! found! whoever! it! was! they!
wanted,!they!left.!No,!I!didn’t!see!their!vehicle!or!get!a!license!
Night&Tide —Sherer&
53&
plate! number.! I’d! been! too! busy! shooting! at! a! man! who’d!
seemed!intent!on!killing!me.!
!
“Attempted!kidnapping?”!Hartson!said!to!his!partner.!
!
Roberts! turned! to! me.! “What,! exactly,! did! these!
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